The Next Step: The Journey Begins

Evening all

Last time out, you may remember:


"Then it just hit me like a stone, why not try some freelancing work as a reporter and finally get some PAID work as a reporter.

Now i do have to admit that i am a bit of a 'Newbie' when it comes to being a freelance reporter, and I had a lot of questions to ask about being a freelancer and where to start."



Yes you remember now. Well all I had was a little help from some great people via Twitter and I believe I  have made the first step in order to get work as a paid journalist.

I have made initial contact with the guys at the RL Express where they cover all aspects of Rugby League, and they will get back to me concerning work about the upcoming 2013 Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup - an event which I am covering for other local media based in Kent.

I have made initial contact with other organisations including KOS Media, KMFM and a couple of local sports clubs and societies based in Medway, Sittingbourne and in Canterbury.

It is not just sports work that I am looking to cover. One of my twitter folk has recommend me to do some court reporting based in Maidstone plus i might have a few more cards yet to play. So its a OK-ish start so far, maybe I could and should have done more but t least the stuff I am doing I feel is the right way to go right now so I am not complaining.

But a few things which have caught my mind since we last met so here is a teaser of what I am calling:

"On the flip side......."

Been watching a lot of Wresting lately - I know, a bit too old for me - and we have started the road to Wrestlemania 29. But compared to last year I am not feeling the love or the excitement for it. I know that the quality of the card is down compared to last year and using a main event with CM Punk, John Cena and 'the Rock' is not very likely to part with my hard earned cash to but the event. But there is still a long way to go and things can change, but I doubt that will happen.

And been feeling a lot of love for F1 2012 on the PS3 lately. As a massive F1 fan - despite that I have never been to a race - I do like the chance to race against the best drivers in the world today I also liked the driving experience you get around some of the best race circuits in the world. despite the positives, the best way to improve this is to add the chance to race against the legends of the sport in their own specific cars to see if you can be the best driver of all time It has kept my enthusiasm ready for the new season of F1 which starts just around the corner in March.

Also starting to feel the magic coming back to priestfield lately, perhaps Gillingham have caught their second wind and the case for the first league title since 1964 is back on the cards. I will be writing a special post concerning the season so far before the end of the month so that will be something to wait for - especially if you are a Gills fan like me.

The Next Step

Evening all

The early part of 2013 has not been to kind to me as a reporter. Yes I have been getting work for the KSN and for the Medway Times which is still pretty good and it is keeping my list up to date with contacts. But after a recent conversation with a career adviser where he said that if I do not get any paid reporting work soon, then I would have to give my up career as a reporter.

Now i definitely do not want to do that and I spent around a day really panicking and worrying a lot about what to do next.

Then it just hit me like a stone, why not try some freelancing work as a reporter and finally get some PAID work as a reporter.

Now i do have to admit that i am a bit of a 'Newbie' when it comes to being a freelance reporter, and I had a lot of questions to ask about being a freelancer and where to start.

But with a lot of help from some very kind people on Twitter - you know who you are - I managed to get an idea of what is needed and where to start. I know that it will be a difficult start to get up and running but i do have the faith and confidence to get up and running and start to make a name for myself as a paid reporter.

After of what has happened to me and for the future, all i am going to say is the following:

Watch This Space.

my 2012; 1 to remember, one never to forget

A Cunning look back of the last year and give my thoughts of what happened.

Evening all,

As like last year on my note page on my Facebook account, I thought that now is the right time to look back at a unforgettable year for me over the past year which without a shadow of a doubt  saw some real highs and a few lows.

so here we go:

January 2012:

A really quiet start to the year, did make a few job enquiries as i started the year off continuing to be unemployed but sadly nothing was coming up for me so i continued my work working as a newsreader and radio presenter for my hospital radio work. i was approaching being with them for a year now and I have really enjoyed the past year with them.

February 2012:

This is where things start to turn for the better as with a little bit of luck, i was given the opportunity to be a sports journalist and write for the Medway Times website for football matches involving Gillingham FC. I continued this for the rest of the season and the feedback i was given for my work was really helpful to make my work more better and more informative and opinionated. It continued right through to the new season as well and with my new iPad, it got easier for me to do my job as well as i did it from my seat in the ground. but later in the year things got better.

May 2012:

Things got really good for as for the first time since 2010, i was offered a job to work with Paul Simon in Strood as a sales assistant. It was quite shocking but to be honest, after the interview, i had a gut feeling that I was going to be offered a job to work. But little did i know who difficult it was going to be to do the job. I had to learn a lot about selling stuff i have never sold before in my life but after a lot of training and patience, i did manage to sell some stuff and it very rewarding to get some decent pay in my account.

But also this month was the Rugby League festival i was covering for both the Medway Times and the Kent Sports News as well. After i had some excellent interviews with everyone who was involved, the weekend finally came with some excellent weather on the Saturday but bad weather on the Sunday. But the event was a complete success for the Medway Dragons, but also for the London broncos as well. The game at Priestfield was also my first game where i was given full access for the press box at the ground and the whole game was a great way to learn what it was going to be like as a proper sports reporter. after the game i learned a lot from the weekend and i was very pleased with the feedback i got from the work i did. 

July 2012:

A big month for as i was going to hit the big 30, but before that, I was given an opportunity to help, work and learn with the BBC again as I was given a chance to work with the team at BBC South East Today. i was there from the start of the day and i tried to contribute as much as i can to the team for the news on that day. I gave them a hint that Gillingham will announce the mew manager either on the day i was there or the day after - sadly for me and for Neil Bell  it was the day after i was there that the new gaffer got announced, just my luck - but also i went out for a 'live link and report' with Jon Hunt - an exceptional journalist - for some new pylons which could blot the landscape near Ashford  it was great to go out for a story as it helped me understand what it is like to be out on the patch as a reporter. Overall i did learn a lot from the day both in the newsroom and out on the patch. 
However personally, i didn't think that i did enough good work to persuade the guys at BBC SE that I deserve a chance to be a reporter. I felt that i upset sports reporter Neil Bell by telling a story which did happen but not on the day it happened, i felt that i disappointed the production team especially Sue Nicholson, Quentin Smith and Jon Hunt that i did not contribute to the days news and i let all of them down when i failed to get information for a possible interview as well. so despite the positives there were a lot of negatives as well. but i still learned a lot from the day. 

I did manage to cheer myself up as i celebrated being 30 although there were no proper celebrations due to some food poisoning which ended up me throwing up in a toilet of my local curry house - lightweight i know - but i did mange to celebrate with the annual Gillingham game 'near enough' on my birthday which was fully enjoyed in the sun at Priestfield. Then it was time to enjoy my day at the London 2012 Olympic Games. I only managed to get tickets for the archery at Lords, but still i enjoyed the day out in London in the rain at Lords and the atmosphere was pretty good and I got to see some great action as well. afterwards i went to Hyde park to catch the evening's Swimming action and it was enjoyable to watch especially when Chad LeClos beat Phelps in one of the swimming finals. I did feel bad that i could only afford one day at the games but still it had given me the taste to try and go for a Rio 2016 job so i happy i went in the end.

October 2012;

The rest of the year after the Olympics and Paralympics were spent working at both Paul Simon and for the Medway Times/Kent Sports News as a sports reporter, But them luckily for me, I asked if i could be given the opportunity to work from the press box for the AFC Wimbledon v Gillingham. And after some phone calls, i was given the access to report from the game in the press box for the first time. I was pretty excited for the game so i went there and did my job as working as a sports reporter. Although i did my job pretty well, being with better journalists around me was very eye-opening. it was great to see guys like Ben Croucher (BBC Radio Kent) and Luke Caldwell (Kent Messenger) doing their jobs and other guys from the BBC Final score and Sky Sports Soccer Saturday  there as well, i felt that i was like being a bull in a china shop. I didn't know what everyone was doing around and i acted like i upset Ben, Luke and everyone from Gillingham and AFC Wimbledon. I also learned a few things as well from Martin Weller - Gillingham FC Press Officer - which will help me be a better sports reporter in the future, so I'm glad and thankful for the access from AFC Wimbledon, I'm hopeful that i will be given another chance for press access soon. 

November 2012:

Things went from bad to worse as from out of the blue, i was called into my managers office at work and due to to poor sales figures i was made redundant from my job with Paul Simon. This definitely upset me as i had made plans to use the money from work to help do stuff like learn to drive and help me get back on my own too feet with my own place. but i wasn't the only one who was upset. all of the staff were upset as they felt i was a key member of the team and to do it before Christmas was a low-blow for the company. But i respected the decision and i was promised of work when the market picked up again. but how long will that be is a question which remains unanswered. 


December 2012;

Despite being made unemployed again, i was determined to see the end of the year with a positive attitude and with Christmas around the corner i decided to visit my mum in Torquay but this time though i was not a healthy man. At the beginning of the month, i started to feel a lot of pain in the right side of my mouth, i went to my dentists and they said that my wisdom tooth got infected and i need to have it out. but the antibiotic tablets didn't get rid of the infection. So whilst on my visit to my mum, i went to the local A&E to let them have a look at it, after a long wait and some x-rays, i was told that i need to have it out ASAP and i needed to stay in hospital whilst they took it out. Being my first proper time in Hospital did frighten me but i was pleased that it was being dealt with before i went home. After nearly a week in Hospital, i had my jaw relined and 2 of my teeth were removed due to the infection. I was pleased that it was all dealt with although at present i still have problems talking and eating but this will pass eventually.

Overall, a really eventful year with a lot of high and lows but it is one year i wont forget and my hope is that 2013 will be more enjoyable for me just as this year was.

JS

Things that... post 1

Following the major success of my 30 for 30 series, I’ve decided to follow this up by explaining to you a bit more about me. This series of blog are titled:

Things that: 

No.1:  Things that:  I would like to be involved with but it’s not happening

Evening all,

Well there are many things that i would like to be involved with at present but it’s not happening. Obviously there’s the chance of working as a reporter for a TV news team but i know that not happening for the foreseeable future but this topic is today still the major thing i want to change in my life.

And the answer is pretty simple; it’s being involved in a relationship with someone.

Now i know what you’re thinking, why is this topic being mentioned here?

It started off when i have been kept asking by a few people that “why haven’t you settled down yet?” or even “how come you don’t have a girlfriend yet?”

Well to put it simply one way or another, girls do not like me and yet i can’t understand why. Although i do like the attention of a lovely looking girl maybe I’m doing something wrong to attract someone who really likes me.

It started badly for me when i was in secondary school, although i did have a troubled time at secondary school, this for normal people is the excellent opportunity to meet someone young and enjoy yourself. Sadly i didn’t get any of these experiences as i was always the one where the girls would tend to avoid. Eventually i did make some friends with some girls but nothing happened. I wasn’t too worried at this time as i was young but willing to move on from this.

When i was at uni on my 3 occasions – yes i do count the times when i was at Nottingham Trent for 3 months in 2006 – the girls i have met at uni were very nice and i can easy get along with them i only saw them as friends from my uni and nothing more.

Apart from a couple of girls who i though were lovely and i would like to get to know them more away from my times at uni. But sadly it seemed that other matters would get in the way like other people beating me to the girls i want to ask out and my dropout of my course in 2006-07.

Plus the other experiences i have had as well have also driven me away from chatting up girls when I’m out on the town. One night out when i was in Torquay i did get chatting to a nice looking girl but as i went to get some drinks a couple of people told me that she was a ‘he-she’ so i put my drink down and immediately ran out of the pub.

At present, well it has gone really downhill firstly, after i have started my new job i did try to make friends with someone i met at work but sadly other commitments put paid to that.

Then i thought i would try to ask out one of the girls who i previously liked from university as she was living local and i thought it would be nice to see her. To put it simply it was not going to happen, even though i do have some genuine feelings for her i will never get the opportunity to express how i feel and although it makes me sad there’s nothing i can do about it.

It is just simply not ever going to happen but one reason i want this to happen is that i do not want to end up like my dad and my brother. My dad is constantly moaning about being tired and lonely and not doing anything about it. And my brother can’t even meet a girl because of his Aspergers Syndrome. So i am trying to get out there and meet people but with no luck so far.

Now i do have to admit, i am no Brad Pitt or anyone who is totally “Sex on legs” because that is totally not me. I also have a bad set of teeth which i have been told that it will cost me over £2000 to repair and i don’t see myself as a attractive kind of guy – although i do visit the gym twice a week to help me with this.

But to count against my negatives, i haven’t cheated on anyone, i see myself as a loyal guy who is passionate for what i do and what i believe in. 

John Seager's 30 for 30: Epilogue

A Cunning look back of 30 days which have changed my life over the past 30 years

Epilogue:  24^th July 2012 – The day i turn 30

Evening all,

Well the day has finally come when i finally turn 30. A very daunting day, it’s a day when i can’t act like a child anymore and i have to be more adult around everyone, especially in a media newsroom.

Whilst writing these 30 days up it does take me back when times were good and especially when times were bad. But i do prove by writing these days that for every bad day something good does come out of it.


But i totally underestimated myself on how popular this was going to be. I was expecting at least a few hundred views from my close friends and family to read them but to get a lot of my other friends reading them is quite a surprise. 


However, i have missed out a few days on purpose which i will not go into in great detail as they are too painful for me to write about.

I hope that you have enjoyed a small peek into my life and i hope that over the next 30 years they’ll be many more to come. Like when i get my first paid reporter job, when i pass my driving test, when i meet the girl of my dreams who i want to settle down with, and of course having children. But there’s it plenty of time for that, I’ve got to go out there and start enjoying my life..

Till next time as they up ‘north

Ah’ll Sithee

John Seager's 30 for 30: Day 30

A Cunning look back of 30 days which have changed my life over the past 30 years

Day 30:  20^th May 2012 – Rugby League in Kent??

Evening all,

Previously on here, i left you with the idea of the following:

“But little did i know, football would not be the only that i will be covering from the area.”

Well it was true i was mainly covering football for the Medway times and i feel in order to try to add to my sporting journalism knowledge i had to try other sports.

Then one day after at trip to Priestfield to see Gillingham play at home i found out that there was going to be a Super League being held at the stadium not only for the first time but also it will be the county’s first ever Super League match.

Naturally i had to find out how big when this was going to happen and it was going to be held on the 20^th May 2012, but there was other events going on that weekend. So it was an excellent opportunity to showcase my work to do Rugby League as well as football.

So i met up with the local Rugby League team who where also having a Rugby League stampede event being held at the same weekend at the Super League game being held at Priestfield. The Medway Dragons have worked really hard to profile the sprat not just across Medway but further afield across the county of Kent. It was really interesting for the plans they have over that weekend.

Medway Dragons - the local Rugby League team. 

I also met up with the London Broncos who were one of the teams involved in the game. They told me that they were really looking forward to the game and are hopeful that if it was popular that they will be back the following season.

The Stampede started off with a Wheelchair Rugby League match being held on the Friday, it was really interesting to see the pure physicality of the sport especially without using your legs.

The stampeded continued on the Saturday and the Sunday with other events being held at Medway Park, before it was time for the main event on the Sunday.

Luckily for me this time was that i was allowed in the press box for the very first time at the Priestfield Stadium. And the view i had from my seat was totally unbelievable. I will go on record as calling the seat i had as the second best seat in the stadium – only being my seat in the Rainham end of course. However, it seemed that i was the only person covering the game for the local media; there were a lot of people in the press box from the RFL and BBC Humberside. But not a single local journalist, it was worrying for me being there as i was the only local journalist but i did meet the assistant editor of ‘The People’, he was there not only for the game but also was working on an article about the Medway Dragons. After the game he took my details in case they ever need a football reporter in the future.

The game in action - still weird seeing Rugby goals at Priestfield.

The match itself was really interesting to watch, the only rugby league i would normally watch are the national games and the super league grand final. Being a southerner you don’t normally get associated with a sport with a northern feel to it. So watching this game really showed the sport can catch on here in the south of England.

After the game, it was time to be whisked off to cover the interviews from the two team coaches before meeting up again with the Medway Dragons to reflect on a massive weekend not only for them but also for me as well.

I had a brilliant time with them over the weekend and seeing the sport being quite popular with the children as well as the adult and the Wheelchair team helped me understand that if they continue as they are going; the dragons will be a very popular rugby league team in Kent – St Helens and Warrington watch out.

After reading my the feedback from my articles from the Medway times and the Kent Sports News – where i now cover all aspects of Rugby for them – i feel that it was a great weekend to get out and report on a sport not normally associated with me but i can’t wait to report on it again. 

John Seager's 30 for 30: Day 29

A Cunning look back of 30 days which have changed my life over the past 30 years

Day 29:  22^nd February 2012 – finally get to be a sports reporter.

Evening all,

Since starting out as a reporter, opportunities to work have been very few and far between. I mean i have my radio work which is still very good as a reporter to show on his CV but actual reporting work had really dried up. I have tried so many times to apply for journalism jobs but i have not been successful.

So when an opportunity comes my way i see it as a brilliant opportunity to showcase me work as a reporter.

The opportunity came my way oddly by default and looking on twitter i saw a local online newspaper called the ‘Medway Times’ which is from the Medway area. That area has recently lost a printed paper over the last year and i thought it would be great to write some articles for them.

The Medway Times - the newest way to get the news in Medway

After a few enquiries, i asked being a sports reporter for them as they didn’t have one at the time. And to my joy they gratefully said yes.

My first work was going to be after the Gillingham v Rotherham game, which meant that the articles was going to be published on the 22^nd February 2012, so i didn’t have a lot of time to prepare for the article.

After the game, i just basically reported on what happened, using my journalism knowledge from Nottingham Trent and write an article of what happened and also give opinion about the performance from the team.

After the article was written and sent to the editor, i got some really good reviews from the people who read the article and also some guidance of how to improve it as well. Which for me i feel will make the articles more readable.

Since then I have been the main person who writes articles in and around Gillingham FC and they get published on the website. It was been a learning curve for me especially getting the work doubled checked before sending the article to the editor.

During the new season i will be adding new work as well from the club which i believe make more people read the online newspaper of the Medway Times.

But little did i know, football would not be the only that i will be covering from the area.

To be continued...